This opportunistic bus managed to lodge itself into the intersection for not one, but two (2!!!!!) traffic light cycles this morning, no doubt causing Muni traffic down Market Street to merge into an even more congealed morass than normal. Not even daring cyclists could get through! If you were late for work downtown this morning, you know who to blame.

Protip: If you’re about to cross Market Street and the light turns yellow, just stop. It’s not going to work out.

This troublesome stretch of Market between 8th and 9th Streets seems to be giving everyone a lot of trouble, and this morning was no different. Everything is wrong with this picture. For instance, a white pickup double-parked in the right lane, which wouldn’t be a problem except for the fact that the right lane needs to be used by cyclists because delivery vans and trucks are blocking the bike lane up ahead directly after the barrier ends. And how did that sedan get across 9th? Doesn’t look like Muni or a taxi to me. Hrmph.

The misty weather made for quite a harrowing ride down Market Street this morning, as I saw this poor fellow go down just ahead of me as he was crossing those pesky Muni tracks. He hit his head pretty hard on the concrete and started bleeding profusely out of a deep gash in his temple.

A number of cyclists dismounted to help the guy, who was shaken up pretty badly and sitting on the ground in a dazed state. Some pedestrians also left the safety of the sidewalk to assist (I stood around and took photos like a jackass), a comforting scene that put the usual cyclist-pedestrian animosity on hold for the moment. A driver even pulled up behind and got out of her car to try and help (the opposite of going on a hit-and-run bicycle smashing rampage).

We implored him to stay down and wait for paramedics, but this was one stubbornly tough dude, and he eventually stumbled over to the curb under his own volition. We all hung out with him until the ambulance arrived and took over.

All in all, an unlucky spill for this cyclist but an inspiring reaction from a group of strangers all accustomed to their own modes of transportation, be it walking, riding, driving, or cycling. Be careful when it’s wet out there everybody!

Apologies for the early morning bluster. I must still be high off the dopamine rush from last week’s Bike to Work Day. But it’s not all empty bravado! Take a second to look around and you’ll surely notice!

For instance, this driver has apparently learned from her earlier bike-lane-obstructing transgressions and is now double-parking in the rightmost vehicle lane instead of the bike lane. I gave her a thumbs up and some verbal affirmation, and she smiled back. She really seems like a polite (although mildly oblivious) lady. Glad to see she’s figured things out!

And what do we have here? JUSTICE!!!

This is the first time I’ve seen private vehicles getting ticketed for failing to make a right turn onto 10th Street from Market. Sorry to rub it in, drivers, but is it really so hard to read those signs?

The powers that be have been installing these safety posts dividing the bike lane from the rest of traffic on Market Street. The latest ones (pictured above) can now be found on the stretch between Gough and Van Ness.

I like the spirit of this idea, since it creates a visual safety barrier and clearly denotes to vehicles that it is unnacceptable to use the bike lane to pass other slower vehicles on the right. Ultimately, this will foster an overall sense of cycling security and will probably encourage the more cautious riders to start commuting to work every day. Furthermore, this will definitely prevent delivery trucks from parking in the bike lane.

However, there is another side of me (the one that doesn’t think twice before splitting Muni buses with an inch of clearance on each side) that so far has only experienced these things getting in the way. Sometimes it is necessary to exit the bike lane and veer into the traffic lanes, such as when passing slower riders who are travelling side by side or when a car inches out of a driveway a litte too far without looking and you need to make instant evasive maneuvers.

Not long ago, well-intentioned yet completely clueless city planning folks changed the traffic flow on Market to force drivers to turn right on 10th St. rather than continue to cause congestion problems while attempting to turn on the ill-suited 8th St. However, this unfortunately put the squeeze on bicycle commuters as they tried to navigate the narrow, somewhat dangerous bike lane bestowed upon them. It seemed a lot of valuable space was wasted, being used as an unnecessary “buffer zone.”

Fortunately, logic has prevailed and the buffer zone is history, replaced by a wider, safer bike lane. Cyclists win! How often does that happen in San Francisco?

BEFORE courtesy of Streetsblog SF

Childishly amateur stop motion traverse through the new scene after the jump . . .

I get woken up by a monsoon outside my window at 4am, but by the time I’m leaving for work at around 8am, the sun is shining. So I mutter a quick ”WTF SF?” and diligently forego BART to get on my bicycle. Nearing Civic Center (Yay for Wednesday Farmer’s Market!) on Market St, I notice the Muni buses are beginning to pile up again, which can pretty much only mean one thing.

this doesn't look good

I approach an officer and ask what’s going on, and he just kind of shakes his head and more or less says (ridiculous paraphrase warning):

Well sir, a cyclist was trying to squeeze between some cars and a bus, and she slipped on those white circular raised bumps (in sweeping arrow formation) that attempt to separate the Muni and car lanes. So she loses balance on her bike and thuds against the side of a bus, and then to add insult to injury Muni rolls over her bike.

I couldn’t talk to the “victim” because she (deduced from officer’s pronoun usage) was in an ambulance, but she didn’t appear to have any life-threatening injuries, and luckily Muni rolled over her bike instead of her leg or face. Totally could have been much worse.

the culprit

Fellow cyclists! We are very aware of how dangerous and slippery Muni rails can be in inclement weather, but there is another enemy in our midst! Don’t let these unsuspecting lumps ruin your day!